Local actor, comedian and writer, Diane Morgan, recently accepted an honorary doctorate from the University of Bolton and her acceptance speech is as heartwarming as it is funny.
Born in Farnworth, Bolton, Diane Morgan has gone on to become a well-known stand-up comedian, actor, TV presenter and writer, among many other things over the past two decades.
Probably best known for her appearances on numerous UK panel shows, Netflix’s Afterlife and as her Bafta-nominated character Philomena Cunk, she is, without doubt, one of the most prominent comics in the country — a fact which was acknowledged by her local university in a ceremony last week.
Presented with the degree during the institution’s final day of annual graduation ceremonies last week, the Cunk on Earth star gave a short, sweet and humorous speech to her fellow graduates, joking, “I should not be here”.
Starting by saying, “There’s been a dreadful mistake”, Morgan was happy to self-deprecate and she accepted the surprise honour, adding, “I got a G in maths. A G!”
Nevertheless, she expressed her gratitude to the university for their “generosity” and went on to shed further light on her long and winding road to success.
Regaling the audience with the story of how she “bumped into Maxine Peake who is also a Boltonian, when [they] were both auditioning to get into Manchester Polytechnic for the acting course” over 30 years ago, she explained that “neither of [them] got in” and it took “three long years” to be accepted.
In the time between bumping into Peake outside Bolton Town Hall and getting into drama school, she detailed her various jobs, from “packing worming tablets, selling fish and chips” and even spending time working as “an Avon Lady”. She also confessed she was sacked from almost all of them.
Quipping that she lost one job at Bolton’s local Last Drop Village tea rooms because she didn’t know what a cream tea was, she went on to add: “I am here to tell you that anything is possible. If you’ve got passion and you work hard, you can do absolutely anything.
“Everyone told me that I wouldn’t be able to make it as an actress, that it was an impossible dream, that you’d need maths. You don’t need maths; you don’t need maths for anything… Take that Rishi Sunak!”
Having cracked up the crowd throughout, that final comment — a dig at the Prime Minister’s remarks that this country suffers due to an “anti-maths mindset” — was met with rapturous applause in a room filled with people who appreciate the arts just as much as they do numbers and the hard sciences.
We pass on our congratulations to Diane Morgan on her honorary doctorate and well-deserved moment of recognition, and hope her story can serve as a reminder that you can do whatever you put your mind to. We didn’t do well in maths either — suck it, Rishi.
Classic gameshow Wheel of Fortune is looking for Mancs to take part in next reboot series
Emily Sergeant
Classic gameshow Wheel of Fortune is looking for Mancs to take part in the next series of the popular reboot.
In case you missed it, Wheel of Fortune returned to ITV for eight hour-long episodes – which included two celebrity specials – back in 2024, with beloved and seasoned BAFTA-winning TV host Graham Norton fronting the revival, and just like the original run, the reboot proved to be very popular with audiences.
Not familiar with the show?
Based on the successful global brand, and modelled on the still-ongoing American show of the same name, the original British version of Wheel of Fortune first aired all the way back 1988, and went on to run for a whopping 14 series and 746 episodes before ending 2001.
Classic gameshow Wheel of Fortune is looking for Mancs to take part in the next reboot series / Credit: ITV / ITVX
The show’s premise is basically based around a giant carnival wheel that the contestants have to spin to win themselves a life-changing cash prize.
Just like the original, the reboot is also a ‘thrilling game of skill and luck’.
In each episode, the turn of the wheel secures contestants a cash value before they pick a letter to help them solve the puzzle, where, for every correct letter they reveal in the puzzle, they win multiples of that amount.
A casting call for the upcoming series on the ITV website reads: “We’re looking for contestants to take part in this brand-new series of the classic gameshow, Wheel of Fortune. If you love solving word puzzles and would like a chance to spin the wheel and win big cash prizes, then please apply now.”
Fancy it then? You’ll just need to be over 18 years old and a legal resident of the UK to apply, so if you reckon you’ve got what it takes, then you can find out more and stick an application in before the closing date of 19 September 2025.
Police issue response and update after ‘shocking’ BBC documentary on The Moors Murders airs
Emily Sergeant
A response and update has been issued by the police after a new documentary on The Moors Murders aired on the BBC this week.
The Moors Murders: A Search for Justice is a two-part documentary series that takes a look back at what is, undoubtedly, one of the most heinous crimes in British history more than 60 years after it happened in the hopes of discovering new evidence and finding answers to the questions that are still left open.
The show aims to document the six decades of suffering that the victims’ families endured in the case that shook the nation.
A synopsis for the two-part documentary series on the BBC website reads: “The Moors murderers, Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, were sentenced to life in 1966 for killing three children. In fact, they had killed five children, and 12-year-old Keith Bennett has never been found.
Moors Murders victim Keith Bennett / Credit: GMP
“But now a team, including author and film-maker Duncan Staff, former murder detective Martin Slevin and forensic archaeologist Professor John Hunter, has examined past investigations, rediscovered files and delved into Ian Brady’s archive.
“They reveal possible grave sites, uncover critical material and perhaps help to solve a case that’s remained open for nearly 60 years.”
The first episode of the documentary aired on BBC Two on Wednesday night (30 July), and the next episode is due to hit TV screens next Wednesday 6 August at 9pm – with more ‘revelations’ and ‘newly uncovered evidence’ expected to be presented.
Public interest in the case has hardly been lost over the past six decades, but given the recent attention the documentary has brought, this has led Greater Manchester Police (GMP) to issuing a statement and update on their ongoing investigations, and assuring that the case is still very much open and and being looked into.
Myra Hindley and Ian Brady – the serial killers behind the Moors Murders, including Keith Bennett / Credit: GMP
“Greater Manchester Police’s investigation into Keith’s disappearance has remained open since 1964,” the statement begins.
“While visible searches have paused over time, with the most recent taking place in 2022, an investigation team within our Major Crime Review Unit, continues our work to find the answers Keith family deserves.”
GMP confirmed that most of the case’s investigative activity continues ‘outside of public view’, revealing that this is done in the hopes that further evidence relating to this case can be uncovered.
The Moors Murders: A Search for Justice is currently airing on the BBC / Credit: BBC
The update continues: “We are in regular contact with Keith’s family, who are central to any action we take. They are kept updated on the ongoing lines of enquiry – some of which, could be jeopardised by public disclosure, and no further comment on these matters will be given.”
Police say they remain ‘very interested’ in any information that could lead to the discovery of Keith.
“We will be seeking to obtain, review, and establish the relevance of all the information held by the documentary team,” GMP’s statement concludes.
Danny Jones -
17th July 2023 
